December 05, 2012

The All-on-4

Implant Treatment Plan

When people lose their back teeth, the jawbone quickly shrinks. In the upper jaw, half of the residual bone can be lost in as little as one year, and with the way the sinus cavity enlarges at the same time, the amount of bone remaining is often not enough to hold implants. In the lower jaw, the posterior ridge shrinks just as quickly. Bone grafting to recapture this lost volume is unpredictable, costly and takes a long time.

All-On-4

For these reasons, a solution to the problem, called All-0n-4, was developed by Dr. Paulo Malo.
He determined that the use of long, well-angled posterior implants (as pictured above) both avoided vulnerable anatomical structures (upper sinuses and lower nerves) and offered improved support for the prosthesis by reducing cantilevers. Together with straight anterior implants, from a bio-mechanical point of view, this arrangement was suitable to support an arch of 12 teeth.

Why only 4?

The use of four implants in an arch reduces treatment complexity, facilitates oral hygiene and allows for a more durable prosthesis. By using NobelBiocare NobelSpeedy Groovy implants, the greatest variety of implant components is available to ensure a highly esthetic outcome. In our office, we have found this solution to be favored by our patients. It is a well proven, scientifically validated, bone anchored alternative to the social, emotional and nutritional disappointments caused by removable dentures.

As Per-Ingvar Branemark, dental implant pioneer, says:

"No one should have to die with their teeth in a glass of water beside their bed."